Brother McDonald encouraged victims to contact the Brothers' Professional Standards Office in Victoria.

He also reiterated his message that the order had no future until it addressed the devastation caused by sexual abuse.

"When I became province leader in 1990, I had no idea of the extent of what had occurred by way of abuse in the decades before I joined the congregation," Brother McDonald said.

"I have spent 25 years of my life trying to deal with the consequences of abusive behaviour by Christian Brothers.

"I will never deny it, I will never condone it. Unless we address this, we have no credibility."

Brother McDonald also testified that some time before 1990, New South Wales police told the former province leader in that state to transfer a Brother accused of abusing a child interstate, or they would arrest him.